| Question | Answer |
| Sigmund Freud | His theory of the meaning of dreams was deemed by some psychologists to be an unsuccessful theory because it did not lead to many testable hypotheses. |
| Cerebral Cortex | -Divided into 4 sections
-Frontal Lobe, Parietal Lobe, Occipital Lobe, and Temporal Lobe |
| Frontal Lobe | -Located at the front of the brain
-Associated with reasoning, motor skills, higher level cognition, and expressive language
-Damage can lead to increased risk taking. |
| Parietal Lobe | -Located at the middle section of the brain
-Associated with processing tactile sensory information
-Damage can lead to problems with verbal memory |
| Temporal Lobe | -Located on the bottom section of the brain
-Important for interpreting sounds and the language we hear.
-Hippocampus located here
-Damage can lead to speech/memory problems |
| Occipital Lobe | -Located at the back of the brain
-Associated with interpreting visual stimuli and information
-Damage can cause visual problems. |
| 3 major components of the brain: | Cerebrum, Cerebellum, Brainstem |
| Brainstem | Controls breathing, digestion, heart rate, and other autonomic processes as well as connecting the brain with the spinal cord and the rest of the body. |
| Cerebellum | Plays an important role in balance but also involved with attention. |
| Cerebrum (Forebrain) | -Makes up 75% of the brain
-Divided into 2 hemispheres
-Cerebral Cortex
-Thalamus
-Hypothalamus
-Pituitary Gland
-90% of all brain neurons are located here |
| Plasticity | A property that allows the brain to change as a result of experience, drugs, or injury. |
| Neurons | -Cells in the nervous system that receive, integrate, and transmit signals.
-3 types: sensory, motor, and interneurons. |
| 2 Main nervous systems | Central and peripheral |
| Afferent Neurons | -Sensory
-Transmit impulses from the periphery toward the central nervous system. |
| Efferent Neurons | -Motor
-Carry nerve impulses away from the central nervous system to muscles. |
| Parts of a Neuron | Dendrites, cell body (soma), axon, myelin sheath |
| Dendrites | Branches that detect information from other neurons. |
| Cell Body (Soma) | Collects/processes information from other neurons. |
| Axon | Long tube that carries electrical signals from the cell body to terminal buttons. |
| Myelin Sheath | Fatty covering that insulates axon, speeding up the signal. |
| Resting Membrane Potential | -Charge of the neuron when it's not active.
-Negative charge |
| Sodium and Potassium | Ions maintain the resting membrane potential via ion channels. |
| Action Potential | Changes in neurons electrical charge. |
| Resting Membrane Potential | -Cell is polarized
-Negative Charge |
| Depolarization | -Sodium rushes into the cell.
-Cell is positively charged. |
| Repolarization | -Potassium rushes out of cell.
-Cell has a negative charge. |
| All-Or-None Principle | Neurons fire with the same potency every time they fire -- can't partially fire. |
| Synapse | Space between neurons. |
| Neurotransmitters | Released chemicals that bind with receptors on the dendrites of the next neuron. |
| Lock and Key Analogy | Only certain neurotransmitters bind with certain receptors. |
| Pre-Synaptic | The one that releases a neurotransmitter in response to an action potential. |
| Post-Synaptic | One that receives the neurotransmitter. |
| Types of Neurotransmitters | Serotonin, Dopamine, and Acetylcholine |
| Serotonin | Function: regulates emotional states and impulses |
| Dopamine | Function: reward and motivation. Motor control over voluntary movement. |
| Acetylcholine | Function: Motor control over muscles - learning and memory. |
| Genetics | How traits, such as height or eye color, are passed to offspring. |
